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139
i.e., the longer an infant or child is fed upon the Depot
milk, the better its chance of living.
Of class (e) the periods during which the 8 infants and
children who died had been fed upon the Depot milk were
21, 20, 8, 5, 3, 2, 2 and 1 days respectively, so that these
deaths cannot fairly be classified as deaths connected with
the Depot.
Including all deaths, the mortality-rate for 1909 amongst
the new Depot-fed infants and children is 95.9 per 1000,
and this rate is much lower than the infantile mortality-rates
for the Borough of Lambeth in general, and for Marsh
Ward (where the Milk Depot is situated), the other Inner
Wards in particular. If the mortality-rate is calculated only
on infants and children who have been fed upon the Depot
milk for continuous periods of 4 weeks and over, the rate
is 83.3 per 1000, whilst the mortality-rate amongst infants
and children fed upon the Depot milk for periods of less
than 4 weeks is 126.9 per 1000.
Thus, the rates for 1909 may be tabulated as follows,
quinquennial rates being added for comparison:—
Depot-fed infants 83.3 to 126.9
Whole Borough 134*
Marsh 187*
Inner Wards 158*
In connection with these mortality-rates, allowance must
be made for the difficulties of strictly comparing the rates
amongst infants and' children fed upon the milk and under
observation for varying periods, with the rates for the whole,
or portions, of the Borough, for a year or period of years.
To be statistically correct, only those infants or children
who have been fed upon the Depot milk for continuous
lengthened periods should be tabulated, whilst the numbers
•These are quinquennial rates.